An extensive literature review of helping behavior revealed research showing that sex differences in helping behavior were probably due to the sex of the person receiving help rather than to that of the person giving help and that volunteers' personality characteristics vary. This study compared differences in self-esteem between males and females and between volunteers and non-volunteers. Fifty undergraduate students participated in the pretest and 109 in the experimental test. The task administered was the Object Identification Test which includes male-appropriate and female-appropriate forms. When a subject is administered the opposite sex's appropriate form, this constitutes a sex-inappropriate task. Subjects identified objects such as a flathead screwdriver or an electric wok. A combination self-esteem/personal competence scale was also administered. Subjects marked their tests with a "v" if they wished to volunteer for further psychological research. In the second session subjects in experimental groups were presented with either a sex-appropriate or sex-inappropriate task. Non-volunteers and volunteers were run through the same procedure at the same time. The results revealed that the self-esteem of volunteers was raised only slightly more than that of non-volunteers with no significant differences between males and females. A statistically higher percentage of females volunteered with a male making the request. These findings support the view that sex differences in helping behavior should not be assumed. Samples from the descriptions of the Objective Identification Test and the self-esteem/personal competence scale are included. A six-page reference list is appended. (ABL)